St. Johns resident and retiree Doug Sleep, left, and MSU alumnus Mark Helberholz sit at a table with seven other local poker enthusiasts Tuesday at Club on the River, 4750 Hagadorn Road. Club on the River has charity poker from noon to 2 a.m. as well as complimentary pizza. No experience is required to play, as employees will teach newcomers how to play.
Although she’s one of the only girls at the table, Nicole Daugerdas plays poker at Club on the River almost every day.
Daugerdas, a physiology senior, has played poker at Club on the River, 4750 Hagadorn Road, since its opening in May. Founded by World Series of Poker player Dean Hamrick, the room recently changed its hours to be open seven days a week.
“I’m usually in here studying until a game starts,” Daugerdas said of the charity poker room, which has plasma TVs, an Xbox 360 and pool tables in addition to several poker tables.
“I like hanging out in here; it’s pretty chill,” she said.
The room is smoke-free and open until 2 a.m. with free wireless Internet access and employees will shuttle students from their dorms if they can’t find a ride to the location. The room is good for more than just poker, Daugerdas said. Each week, Club on the River chooses a different charity to sponsor, and a portion of the loot from each pot at a tournament goes toward its cause.
Hamrick decided to open a charity poker room after his success in the World Series of Poker, he said. Although he travels for professional poker about once a month, he is at Club on the River about four days a week and is willing to teach newcomers how to play the game.
Since its opening, the room has done well, but Hamrick hopes to see a more constant flow of people at the poker room.
“Whether they’re students or old-timers, we’d just like to see more people in general,” he said. “It’s got a close proximity to campus and we’d just love to see more people come out.”
The location originally was going to be on Grand River Avenue, but was turned down by the East Lansing City Council, Hamrick said.
The best part of the poker room is the opportunities for charities to raise money, Hamrick said. So far, the location has raised more than $40,000 for charity.
“The charities have done well; it really is a win-win situation for them,” Hamrick said. “There’s no cost to them.”
Paul Hooven, a charity representative for St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in Rochester, said the church has hosted two events at the poker room and plans to host a third in October. The charity is responsible for watching over the tables and handling the money, Hooven said.
For Hooven’s church, the goal was to raise money to build schools in less fortunate areas of Africa, he said.
“In the two weekends we were here, we made $3,500,” he said. “It’s really a more efficient way to make money for a charity than having to spend half of your funds on promotion.”
Gordie Gradinscak, floor manager of Club on the River, said he was hired to work at the poker room from being friends with Hamrick, who he has known since childhood.
Residents from all around East Lansing come to play in the poker room, Gradinscak said, in addition to business owners and even senior citizens.
With $20 and $40 cash games, play is relatively cheap, even for students, Gradinscak said.
“You really get more bang for your buck here,” he said. “And you get to play some really good poker; we have some of the best structured tournaments.”
Club on the River is expecting to have more students come to the room in addition to East Lansing residents because they have been advertising around campus, Gradinscak said.
In the future, there might be pool tournaments and Xbox 360 game tournaments in addition to poker tournaments.
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Daugerdas said since she started playing poker at Club on the River, she has sharpened her skills enough to play in Las Vegas, where she won money.
“Here, I learn from the best,” Daugerdas said of members of Club on the River such as Hamrick. “And it’s way better than just studying at home.”
Club on the River is open from noon to 2 a.m. daily and has call-ahead seating. On Oct. 20, the poker room will host a farewell poker tournament for World Series of Poker player Joe Cada, a resident of Utica.
